


Descendants 4: Mal's Darkness

by Ginnyrules27, TRLaraCroft



Category: Descendants (Disney Movies)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-03-01
Packaged: 2021-03-12 07:40:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 21,358
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29381493
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ginnyrules27/pseuds/Ginnyrules27, https://archiveofourown.org/users/TRLaraCroft/pseuds/TRLaraCroft
Summary: It's the Royal Wedding, but something happens to Mal turning her powers against her. Will Ben save her in time or will Hades get help from his brothers. Is this the end of the happy couple or just the beginning.
Relationships: Ben/Mal (Disney: Descendants)
Kudos: 10





	1. Hades

It was going to be a huge day in Auradon. People had rushed to finish preparing the chapel for the King and future Queen's wedding; running up and down to get everything finished on time. Everyone with the exception of one person.

Hades couldn't help but stare in disbelief that this day had come. It felt as if time had sped up, as there was no way that it could have been only four months since his daughter had taken down the barrier surrounding the Isle of the Lost. Four months since all the villains had gotten their taste of the sun. He still remembered how Mal looked at him as he approached, keeping a distance from the mob of people on the bridge to avoid any mass panic.

Ben had shown him around Auradon, trying his best to impress Hades. Hades, though, didn't need to be impressed. Even though he had stared down Ben at the engagement party, Hades could tell that his daughter was happy and that she was truly in love with Ben. That was all he could ask as a father and it was all he ever wanted for her. His brothers, lounging in Olympus or splashing about in the ocean, would have said that he had gotten a soft heart. But Mal was his everything.

He wandered around the chapel, glancing at everyone rushing around busy with the last little bit of finishing touches. Hades stood in the corner, half hidden by shadows; making sure everything was perfect for Mal. Glancing at the alter, Hades watched Jane and her mother directing Chad and Jay in hanging up the picture that was to go above the alter. Taking a closer look, Hades couldn't help but smile. It was a picture of Mal in a purple dress with Ben holding her. They were standing face to face, making it look like they were dancing; the love they felt for each other evident on their faces.

He couldn't help but think about how he held her on the bridge, not wanting to let her go again. To this day, he still felt bad about leaving her when she was six months old.

 _It was for her own good,_ Hades thought as he made his way through the chapel. _Mal deserved better than to have two parents who were constantly fighting all the time. Besides, I needed space from that crazy dragon witch. I naively thought that Maleficent would have made a better parent than I would have. I mean, if Maleficent had grown to love Aurora like her own it would have been safe to assume she would have done the same for her own child right?_

He didn't need the Fates to tell him how wrong he had been. He had learned that himself. Hades had seen how cruel Maleficent had been with Mal as he watched them through the ember; unable to prevent the treatment that could have been so easily avoided if he had taken Mal with him when he left.

When Mal was about ten years old, Hades had gotten a visit from the Facilier's. From that visit, he had gained an errand rat and a way to get better information on Mal. Every time the younger girl came, whether to fulfill an errand for him or restock his supply of canned corn, Hades would make sure to ask how Mal was. He wasn't guaranteed an answer; after all the two girls were different ages and ran in different social circles. But he still asked.

The day Mal left for Auradon had been the hardest day of Hades' life. It was the best because it meant that his little girl was finally out of the talons of her mother but it was also the worst because of that Zeus damned barrier. It meant that he could never see his daughter again.

 _A small price to pay for Mal to be happy, healthy and away from Maleficent,_ he thought as he leaned against the wall and looked back at the picture. Hades still remembered the shock of his daughter getting out of the coach with then Prince Ben, seeing her dressed like a princess. It was a reminder of exactly how much of Mal's life he had missed and that Mal truly wasn't his _little_ girl anymore. Though it was nice to see that she could look after herself and Hades could gleefully admit that he cheered when Mal turned her mother into a gecko for everyone in Auradon to see.

Hades sighed as his thoughts went back to the bridge the day the barrier came down; the day that he gave Ben his blessing to marry his daughter. Not that the king needed it; as king Ben could have married anyone of his choosing after all. Heck, if Mal hadn't told him who he was, Hades doubted that Ben would have asked. After all, Maleficent was a gecko so there was really no one on Mal's side to ask.

But Ben _had_ asked, a small thing that endeared the young man to Hades. Despite the fear that was evident on Ben's face, he still asked the God of the Dead if he could marry his daughter. A blessing Hades gave readily. Despite not wanting to give her away after just getting her back, he could see the happiness on Mal's face after giving his blessing. It was clear that she was thrilled just to see that he cared about her. He knew how Maleficent was, or rather how she had been. She would just say love was weakness.

 _How did I fall for her all those years ago?_ Hades thought with an inward sigh. _Was it really love or was I just lonely?_

Shaking his head slightly and sighing, Hades looked back at the picture. As he stared at it, one of the songs that Jay and Lonnie had played earlier that day ran through his head. The songs had been a selection for the Father Daughter dance later that night.

_Well, she came home today with a ring on her hand_

_Just glowing and telling us all they had planned_

_She says,_

_"Dad, the wedding's still six months away_

_But I need to practice my dancing_

_Oh, please, Daddy, please?"_

Hades made his way out of the chapel and to Beast Castle where he and Mal were staying, each with their own separate rooms. As he made his way back to the castle, images floated through his head. Mal sneaking into the Underworld, trying to steal the ember. The way she had looked at him when he snatched Audrey from the jaws of death. Personally he couldn't help but think that the little pink princess had made her bed and therefore should lie in it but Mal had asked. He couldn't refuse a request from his daughter.

_So I will dance with Cinderella_

_While she is here in my arms_

_'Cause I know something the prince never knew_

He could see the looks of terror on the citizens of Auradon's faces as they made their way past him while former Isle residents simply walked past him without any drama. They even ignored the fact that he was singing; which considering the fact that most of the Isle residents had their own song and dance number was the least they could do.

The people of Auradon claimed to have a reason to fear him. After all, he was the God of the Underworld. After the barrier came down, rumors spread that he would turn back to evil and destroy them all.

 _Funny,_ Hades thought with a snort. _That had been on his mind but Mal changed my heart._

_Oh, I will dance with Cinderella_

_I don't wanna miss even one song_

As he entered his rooms, Hades made his way to the balcony to enjoy the feeling of the sun on his skin. It may have been four months but it was something he could never get enough of. The Underworld wasn't exactly sunlight central after all.

Hearing the door open on the balcony next to his, Hades looked and couldn't help but smile when he saw Mal. The smile faded when he saw how tense she was—it was clear to anyone with eyes that his daughter was stressed.

As if sensing his eyes on her, Mal looked over and locked eyes with Hades. Hades couldn't help but think that Mal's eyes looked a bit brighter than usual but shook his head and gave her a small smile as he turned away. It was her wedding night, of course she was stressed.

_'Cause all too soon the clock will strike midnight_

_And she'll be gone_

As he finished singing, Hades couldn't help but frown as the warmth from the sun vanished. However he just assumed that it had gone behind a cloud. Walking back inside, Hades missed the slow darkening of the sky and the whiff of purplish blue smoke making its way to Auradon.


	2. Darkness and smoke

After about thirty minutes of the lack of sun, Hades began to worry a bit. It was early in the day and Snow White had predicted a bight sunny day for the royal wedding. Why the weather for the day mattered since the wedding proper would be at night, Hades had no idea. However, it didn't change the fact that that's what the princess had predicted.

Walking back out to his balcony, Hades stared in slight confusion as he heard thunder in the distance.

_Was this Zeus' doing?_ Hades thought. _No, there would have been lightning by now. Not to mention, there was no reason for Zeus to try to ruin the royal wedding. Hera would probably kill him if he did, considering her position as Goddess of Marriage._

Looking back over at Mal's balcony, as if to see what his daughter thought about the whole thing, Hades frowned as he saw that Mal was no longer on the balcony. He hadn't heard the door to her room close so where had she gone? He would have heard a dragon transformation after all.

Quickly making his way to her room, Hades' frown deepened as he saw that Mal wasn't in her room at all. Instead he saw Evie and Dizzy on the balcony, the older girl looking worried.

_They must have come out when I went back in,_ Hades thought as he didn't remember seeing them on the balcony when he had checked before making his way to Mal's room.

"Mal?" Hades called, hoping his daughter was just in the bathroom or something. Evie turned around upon hearing his voice.

"Lord Hades," Evie sighed and unless Hades was mistaken there was a bit of relief in her voice. As if he would know what to do. Hades had to admit, that was new territory for him. But this was no time to focus on that as Evie and Dizzy stared at him; worry and fear evident on their faces.

"Where's Mal?" Hades asked, scanning the room. He had only been in her room a few times since she got it, and only if Mal invited him in. He respected his daughter's privacy after all. After all that had happened, Ben thought it might be a good idea if Mal had her own room in the castle; something Belle and Beast readily agreed upon. Mal had accepted the room on the condition that Hades' room be right next to hers.

"I don't know," Evie said and Hades stopped, looking directly at her. What did Evie mean by that? How did she not know where Mal was? _This was Mal's wedding day, of all the things you don't lose the_ _ **bride**_ _is the most important!_ Hades thought.

Dizzy started picking up some of the jewelry and clothes that were lying around, presumably to keep busy but Hades figured it was partially out of fear. The younger kids still feared Hades to some degree even though he was Mal's father.

"She stepped out for some air," Evie continued. "We let her, she seemed really stressed. I figured it was just wedding jitters. When I came to check on her, she was gone."

Hades continued to stare at Evie in disbelief. "Evie, you're using her bedroom as wedding headquarters. You would have heard if she transformed into a dragon. Where could she be?"

"I don't know!" Evie said, her eyes welling with tears. "All I know is she was on this balcony when she went out for air and when I came out to check on her, she was gone."

Dizzy frowned and stopped picking up the scattered clothes and jewelry, pointing to the muted television that had been on in the background. "Uh Evie? Lord Hades? What's that?"

Evie and Hades turned and looked at what Dizzy was pointing to; Hades frowning as he saw the whiff of purplish smoke making its way to Auradon.

"Honestly I don't know," Hades said as he turned away from the television, "but I think it has something to do with Mal disappearing."

Sighing, he glanced around Mal's room as if trying to get some clue as to where his daughter had gone. He hated _not_ knowing what was going on. It was one of the beauties of the ember, getting to use it and see what Mal was up to. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Mal's dress hanging on the doorknob of her wardrobe. It was a beautiful purplish blue dress, the design making it look as if dragon scales ran up the sides.

"Could this be Maleficent's work?" Evie asked, looking at Hades as Hades walked over to Mal's bedside table. He picked up the lone ring that was sitting there; the ring Ben had given to Mal all those months ago at Coronation. His Signet ring.

"No," Hades said, turning to look at Evie. "Last time I checked on my ex-wife, she was still a lizard."

"We should find Ben," Dizzy spoke up. "He should know what happened."

Hades nodded, glancing at the dark sky. "You two, go and find the king. While you're at it, see if you have any luck in finding Mal."

He pocketed the ring and looked back at Evie.

"What are you going to do?" Evie asked. Normally she'd never question a God but her best friend was missing. Besides, Ben would probably ask about the location of his future father in law. Hades sighed.

"I'm going to go visit my brother and see if he'll provide some help," Hades told her, as he wracked his brain for something he had learned over the millennia he'd spent on the earth. Demi-gods and fairy powers, when they combined, always took over if the user didn't have proper training in handling their powers. Hades just hoped this wasn't the case here. "If I'm right, and I hope I'm not, Mal's powers are overtaking her."

"What do you mean 'overtaking her'?" Evie asked, confusion written all over her face. "As in this may destroy her?"

"She's half God and half Fairy, half Hades and half Maleficent. Meaning her powers are growing more powerful and Mal doesn't know it," Hades said as he walked to the door. Reaching the doorway, Hades stopped and turned back to Evie. "This makes her dangerous, not only to us but to herself as well."

"Will you be able to help her control it?" Evie asked.

Hades sighed. "If I'm able to get help, then yes," he said, hoping his younger brother would be willing to help him after everything he did. _If ever there was a time to look past my kidnapping your son and attempting the coup on Olympus, it would be now,_ Hades thought. _At least do it for Mal if you're not going to do it for me._

Evie walked up to Hades, resting a hand on his arm. "Please tell me she'll be okay."

"Evie, she's my daughter and I love her. I won't let this take her down," Hades told her but Evie could clearly see a glimmer of fear in the Lord of the Underworld's eyes. "That's why I'm heading to Olympus."

"I hope Zeus helps," Evie said softly as she backed away.

"Trust me, if he doesn't, I'll find a way to help Mal," Hades promised as he looked once more toward the dark sky. The last thing he wanted was to go up there but he didn't have a choice. He was a father. "Go on. I'll see you later and, if you find Mal, try to calm her down."

"How?"

"Her powers, I'm assuming, are eating on her stress and fear. Natural feelings for a bride on the day of her wedding. Try to get her relaxed so we can keep her powers at bay until I'm back."

Evie nodded. "She's my best friend. I can handle that."

Hades nodded and turned, walking off and leaving the two girls staring at the muted television once more. Evie couldn't help but wonder where they'd be able to find Ben. _I last saw him heading to the chapel,_ Evie thought. _But would he still be there?_


	3. Brothers

On Mount Olympus, Zeus sat on his throne looking down at his daughter who was busy explaining to him everything that was happening down on Earth. Poseidon stood off to the side with his son, listening in. The other Gods were not in attendance as Zeus had decided that this matter should be resolved between Poseidon and himself, along with their children.

"We still don't know who she is or where she came from," Zeus' daughter continued. "But this is all happening in one location, and if we don't stop it now, it may spread to the rest of the world. Father, this is clearly the work of one of the Gods. Actually, due to the type of powers this mystery woman is displaying, there's only _one_ God it could be tied to. Forgive my asking but whatever happened to Hades, lord of the Under—?"

"Well little one, as you can see nothing happened to me," Hades interrupted as he strolled into the meeting, Poseidon and his son looking on.

"Well, if it isn't my big brother," Zeus said as he stood up and walked toward the God of the Dead. "Welcome back. I must ask, what brings you back after all these years? Did Maleficent finally kick you out?"

"Oh brother, you will never change," Hades snarked as he rolled his eyes at Zeus' laughter. Looking at Zeus' daughter, Hades raised an eyebrow. "And you _are_?"

"Zelda, Goddess of the Earth and only daughter to Zeus," she said, a smile on her face that went all the way to her big brown eyes. "You may not have heard about me because my brothers seem to capture the attention of the mortals."

Hades nodded. "Well, Zelda was it? As your father doesn't want to answer your question, allow me."

"Leave my daughter alone," Zeus said, walking up to Hades and resting a hand on his shoulder. Hades rolled his eyes and brushed off Zeus' hand.

"When I walked in, she was busy talking about somebody powerful. _Who_?"

Zeus stepped back, looking at Poseidon, who simply nodded his head as if to give Hades a chance to listen in. "Very well. Zelda, continue. Hades can listen to our problem, not that he would be able to solve it."

"Oh, thank you for the permission brother and for, you know, not answering my question," Hades muttered and turned to look at Zelda; the three brothers listening more attentively than they had previously.

"As I was saying, this fairy or Goddess or whoever she is has placed a spell on the world. It appears to have started in Auradon. She's dangerous. So far, we've seen that she can send people back to the Isle of the Lost and managed to put the barrier back up. This is blocking everyone who was sent there from getting back out and so far it's only the people of Auradon and Villains who have found their way back to the Isle."

Zelda took a breath and continued. "The spell is a darkness that appears to be eating everything in its path with fire and burns it to ash. _That's_ why I was wondering where you were uncle," she finished, turning to Hades.

"Well, brother, this _does_ sounds like it's your doing," Poseidon said, speaking up. "Care to explain?"

"Before I do, and _thank_ you for the confidence brother, what did you mean by the barrier's back up and everyone's being sent back to the Isle?" Hades asked, looking at Zelda.

Zelda gave a soft sigh before looking at her uncle. "Let me show you," she said and made a projection appear on a nearby wall. A closer look showed the people of Auradon huddled in fear, as did some of the villains, while other villains carried on like it was a regular day.

Hades sighed and turned to Zeus. "It's not me. But I know who it is. That's the reason I've come. As much as it pains me, I need your help brother."

"Who is it?" Zeus asked, looking at Hades in slight confusion.

"My daughter." Hades responded, sitting down in one of the chairs.

Poseidon and Zeus looked at one another in slight shock before looking back at Hades.

"Wait, wait, you have a _daughter_?" Poseidon asked, a slight frown on his face. "Since _when_? Why didn't you bring her for training?"

"Yes, well I would only I was trapped on that there Isle," Hades said, pointing to the image of the Isle still projected on the wall in front of them. "Twenty years ago, you know when I happened to fall for Maleficent? King Adam aka King Beast captured all of us and locked us on that damn Isle of the Lost. Maleficent and I had a baby girl. She's the one who broke the goddamn barrier about four months ago. Long story short, I was never in her life when she was growing up since I thought I'd be a bad parent. So we've basically been making up for lost time."

Hades paused and shook his head. "But now…something's happened. It's her wedding day and I have a theory that I hope is wrong but all the signs are pointing the other way. I think her powers are building from all her stress and fear. Now, she can't control them anymore and I noticed it too late."

Zeus nodded and grabbed his thunderbolt. "Then we kill her."

"No, you won't!" Hades shouted as he stood up in anger, his hair turning blue. While on the mortal realm of Earth he would have needed the ember to control his powers, here on Mount Olympus or down in his lair in the Underworld, he had no need for it. "She is still my daughter and I'll be _damned_ if you touch a hair on her head Zeusey!"

"Zeus, let's think about this rationally," Poseidon stepped in. "If this is only because her powers are over taking her, we need to control her. Stop her."

"You may be right but _he_ needs to fix this," Zeus said, pointing to Hades. "With his and Maleficent's powers combined, we're looking at possibly the world's ending."

He set down the thunderbolt and turned to Hades. "Where's the Ember?" Zeus asked.

"Ah yes. About that," Hades said. "Mal has it."

He hadn't known Mal would get so powerful due to the fact that she was only half God, half Hades, but now…he wasn't even sure if what Zeus had just said would ring true. Could having his and Maleficent's powers really make Mal that powerful? He didn't even want to entertain the possibility since that might lead to people calling for her death out of fear.

"You gave it to her? Are you _mad_?" Zeus exclaimed and shook his head. "Brother, I'm sorry but this is your mess. You either fix it by dawn or else she dies."

Hades could only stare at his brother in shock as Zeus sat back down on his throne.

"Father, Uncle Hades doesn't stand a chance without our help," Zelda said, turning to face Zeus. "If he truly did give Mal the Ember, she would destroy him if the powers of the Ember are controlling her."

Zeus sighed before looking at his daughter.

"My dear little one, unfortunately it's your uncle's problem. He made his bed, he has to lie in it. If it's not fixed by tonight, we will strike."

Zelda sighed, not entirely convinced by her father's argument.

"Uncle, get the ember back from her," Zelda said, turning to Hades. "Without it, her powers should weaken."

"It's fine Zelda. I made the mistake, I'll fix it," Hades said before walking up to Zeus, who was still sitting in his throne. Leaning down, Hades whispered in his ear. "If you hurt my daughter in any way, then we will be at war brother."

"You have until dawn Hades," Zeus whispered back.

"I know. Promise me this, as a favor from one brother to another," Hades said before pausing for a moment. "If I can't get Mal to control her powers…and she must be killed, you let me be the one to do it and not you."

"I said I'll give you till dawn to fix it," Zeus said, standing up and causing Hades to back up a little as he had been standing over Zeus. "If you don't kill her, I will."

Before Hades could respond, Poseidon rushed up to stand between them.

"Brothers, stop! These are our children we're talking about," he said, looking at his son and at his niece. "Hades, I'll help you. I'll meet you back on Earth."

Hades nodded. "Thank you brother. At least someone will help me," he said, resting a hand on Poseidon's shoulder but keeping his eyes on Zeus.

"I'll help too," Zelda said, stepping up next to her two uncles.

"Zelda, you will do no such thing!" Zeus exclaimed.

"Father, I am the Goddess of the Earth. It is my job to protect those who live there, so I will help my uncle with this!"

Zeus stared at Zelda in disbelief before sighing and shaking his head slightly.

"Very well," he said as he sat back down. "But I'll still be waiting for news from you Zelda. If that's everything, you all may go and fix his mess."

Hades didn't say anything but just turned and left with Zelda, Poseidon and his son trailing behind. Once outside the palace, Poseidon turned to Hades.

"Remember, I'll find you down there," he said and disappeared into the elevator to descend to Earth. Zelda glanced at Hades before they both left Olympus to find Mal before their deadline.

As he walked off, Hades couldn't help but think about his little girl. _Not so little anymore,_ Hades thought with an inward sigh. _I hope you find your way back before it's too late Mali._


	4. Blue flames

Evie and Dizzy left the castle in search of Ben, trying their best to keep away from the purple flames that were burning all around them. They made their way through the gardens to the chapel. They expected to see everyone still preparing for the wedding, or maybe Mal frantically looking for Ben.

However, when they got there, it was quiet, and the smoke had covered everything like a purplish blue blanket. Evie looked to the staircase of the chapel and back to Dizzy. The younger girl was looking to the skies as the purple-blue smoke covered the last bit of sunlight.

"Evie I'm scared," Dizzy whispered, grabbing Evie's hand as they near the chapel.

"Dizzy, it's okay. We've got to be strong, we will get through this together." Evie comforted the younger girl, looking at her. As they neared the door to the chapel, Evie sighed and looked at Dizzy. "Just stay here. I'm quickly going to go in and see if Ben is in there."

Dizzy nodded and Evie walked up to the door of the chapel. As she opened the doors, Evie found only smoke still lingering in the air and flames all around as they slowly died. The flowers were smoldering and the picture was still burning. The place basically looked like a big mess of ash, dust and fire everywhere. Walking further into the chapel, Evie looked around frantically; trying to see if she could find anyone still there.

As she searched, Evie paused as she heard a faint whimper. It almost sounded like someone crying. Turning toward the sound, Evie made her way to the alter as the crying seemed to get louder. Reaching the alter, Evie paused as she realized the person crying was Mal, who was on her knees with her back toward Evie. As if she sensed Evie's presence, Mal quickly got up and turned around. Evie couldn't help but notice Mal's hair wasn't its normal purple state but instead it was burning blue like Hades. As well, the fire seemed to be burning from her neck to her hands, yet didn't seem to be hurting her.

"M, it's okay. It's just me," Evie said, looking at her best friend.

"Evie, please stay back," Mal told her, holding her hands up as if to prevent Evie from getting too close. There was a faint plead to Mal's voice that seemed out of place for the normally confident leader of their gang and the future queen of Auradon. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Mal, I'm not scared of you," Evie said, stepping a little closer. Evie couldn't help but feel a twinge in her heart as Mal tried to back away only to be prevented by the alter.

"Please, Evie, stay _back_!" Mal yelled, holding her hands higher and Evie saw the Ember in Mal's hand.

 _Try to get her relaxed so we can keep her powers at bay until I get back,_ Hades' words rang through Evie's head.

"M, calm down. Let's talk about this, maybe I can help you," Evie said, holding out her hand for Mal to take. Looking closer, Evie could see that Mal's eyes were flickering between blue and green. "Please, Mal, I know you're a good person. You wouldn't want to hurt anyone."

"But I'm not," Mal said faintly. "I…I don't know what's happening to me," she said, trembling slightly as she looked at Evie. The blue haired girl started moving a little closer to Mal, gently resting a hand on Mal's shoulder once she was close enough. Unnoticed by the two girls, the Ember in Mal's hand glowed brighter and suddenly, Evie was hit with a blue blast from the Ember. The blast was strong enough to send Evie flying to the other side of the chapel.

" _No_!" Mal exclaimed as she saw Evie fall motionless to the ground. Clenching her hands into fists, Mal felt tears began to stream down her face. More than anything she wanted to rush over to Evie's side, to see if her friend was okay. But before she could move, the chapel doors opened and Mal saw a frightened Dizzy staring back at her.

"I'm so sorry," Mal whispered and disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke, leaving only the destruction behind her. Dizzy ran over to Evie, who was still unconscious. Coughing as she inhaled the smoke, Dizzy bent down to try to find a pulse. Thankfully there was a weak one.

"Evie, please wake up," Dizzy begged, shaking the blue haired girl lying on the ground. In her frantic attempt to wake Evie, the younger girl didn't notice someone coming up behind her. Only the sound of a throat clearing was able to shake Dizzy from her focus and she turned to see Ben and Doug standing behind her. Dizzy could only rush toward Ben, tears in her eyes, as she wrapped her arms around the king.

"Shh, it's okay," Ben said, rubbing the younger girl on the back as Doug bent down to check on Evie. "What happened?"

"M-Mal," Dizzy said, wiping away her tears as she stepped away from Ben. "She attacked Evie."

"Are you sure? Mal did this?" Ben asked, looking around the chapel; the picture was almost completely destroyed with only Mal's face remaining. Everything else was black as night as it had burned as the flames touched it. "This is _our_ Mal we're talking about right?"

"Yes Ben," Dizzy said. "I came in as I heard a noise and saw Mal standing there at the alter and Evie was lying here. She even apologized before she disappeared."

She looked over at Doug, who was trying to wake Evie up. Finally, he managed to get her to open her eyes. Evie coughed and winced as she touched her stomach, the area still tender from where she got hit with the blast.

"Are you okay?" Doug asked gently as he held her. Evie could only nod and looked up at Ben who was trying to cheer Dizzy up.

"Ben," Evie said softly. "Something's taken over Mal. I could see it in her eyes but I know she's still in there."

"What do you mean?" Ben asked, walking over to Evie's side, kneeling down to stay below the smoke.

"She looked almost transformed. Her hair looked like it was a blue flame but the flame seemed to be enveloping her from her hands to her neck. Her eyes were flicking between blue and green, almost like it was trying to pick up on her powers."

"What about Hades? Where is he? Can't he fix this?" Ben asked. _Gods, I can't believe this. What about our wedding? Were we moving too fast for Mal? Was she worried about letting Auradon down as their queen?_

"Hades thinks her powers are taking over her. It looked like that when I talked to her, Ben. Her powers are turning her. Mal's gone bad."

"Where's Hades?" Ben asked again as Doug helped Evie up.

"He went to Olympus, to ask for help from Zeus," Evie told Ben and looked over at Dizzy before looking back at the king. "Ben, you might be the only one who can get through to Mal."

"We need to find her first," Ben said as they started to leave the chapel. It was getting almost impossible to breathe in there. Walking out of the chapel, breathing in the fresh air, the four of them made their way down the staircase.

"But where would she have gone to?" Doug asked and Ben sighed. It was a good question and one he couldn't immediately answer. There were a lot of places where Mal was likely to go: the lake, the forest or back to her old clubhouse if she could find a way around the newly erected barrier. Ben looked over at the castle before looking up to the sky.

_Hades went to Zeus, Mal's turned back to evil. What's next?_

"Ben, where is everyone?" Evie asked, breaking into Ben's thoughts. Ben looked around to see that there was no one in sight, almost as if they had disappeared.

"I don't know. I was talking to two of the VKs who were helping me with music for the wedding when I blinked and they were gone. It was if they just disappeared."

"Do you think Mal's behind that too?" Doug asked, holding onto Evie's hand as if doing so would prevent her from disappearing too as he looked at Ben. Dizzy sat on the stone wall, looking at the older kids.

"I don't know," Evie answered before Ben could. "All I know is that we need to find her. Fast."

"But where?" Ben asked, worried for Mal. He wanted to see her for himself, to see that it wasn't her but someone else behind all of this. But if her best friend was saying Mal had gone bad…he didn't want to believe it but the evidence was making it hard to ignore.

"Ben, I…I really don't know," Evie said softly as she looked at him with sad eyes. "She's my best friend and I tried to get through to her. I failed."

"Evie, we will find her." Ben promised. "Anyway, I'm not going to wait for Lord Hades to save the day yet again," he said, thinking about how Audrey was brought back from the brink of death by Hades himself.

"Ben, where did Mal like to hang out the most?" Doug asked.

"That's a problem," Evie answered for Ben. "She liked a lot of places. I know if I was her, I would pick a place that was far from anyone. Maybe the lake or the forest?"

"Let's start at the Enchanted Lake," Ben said as they walked off.


	5. Enchanted Forest

Mal reappeared in the Enchanted Forest, breathing heavily after her encounter with Evie. Clenching her fist to prevent the tears that were filling her eyes from falling, she began to walk into the darkness of the forest; hoping to disappear from everything and everyone.

The image of Evie falling kept flashing through her head. That was her fault, she had done that—and to her best friend too. If she had done that to Evie, what could she possibly do to Ben? Or any kids they might eventually have? Growing more and more upset, Mal began to run into the darkness of the forest only to have her foot get caught on a branch causing her to trip and fall to the ground.

She lay there on the ground crying, even more, this was the most she had cried her whole life but then as she laid there on the ground a voice was heard inside her head, echoing to her and it sounded like her mother.

She laid there on the ground for a few minutes, staring up at the forest canopy. It was too much—the building of her powers, the nerves from her upcoming wedding, the fact that she had attacked Evie and now the physical pain she felt from the fall…the dam that held the tears at bay broke and she began to cry. In all honestly, this was more than she had cried in her entire life; more than the time she ran back to the Isle before Cotillion. As she continued to lie on the ground, a voice echoed through her head. A voice she hadn't heard since she was sixteen years old.

_Stop that Mal. Crying is weakness._

Mal rubbed her temples as she slowly sat up, brushing the forest floor from her back.

"No. Crying is _not_ weakness!" Mal yelled into the distance.

_You're weak then. I didn't raise you like this! Stand up!_

The Ember in her hand glowed brighter once again, clearly feeding off of Mal's emotions, but Mal closed her eyes tighter in an attempt to keep herself calm. She knew now what was going on—the Ember had spoken to her when she had been on the balcony, warning her of what was coming. Yet she had ignored it and now look where she ended up. Controlled by her own powers and her mother trying to break her mentally.

"I need to control this. For Auradon's sake. For Ben's," Mal muttered as she looked at the Ember. However, images began to flash through her head once more. She saw images of the wedding, of Ben standing in a suit by the alter and Hades walking toward him. Her father's face had a look that seemed to say it all and Mal could see that she wasn't by his side. Something had clearly happened. The images continued with Hades giving Ben the ring he had proposed to Mal with a look that Mal had never seen on her father's face before.

Unbeknownst to Mal, her hand began to flame up as she saw the images. There had been a fear she had been battling throughout the past month. She feared she'd get cold feet, fearing that she'd be a bad queen. Thinking about the images that had passed through her head, the flames reached her hair so it was once again burning like her father's.

_Mal, you're afraid of being queen because of one simple thing. You're not me._

Her mother's voice returned, seemingly laughing at Mal's pain which only served to upset Mal more. All her life, Maleficent had told her to be like her, to be evil like her. But after meeting Ben, falling in love with him and even finding out he was her True Love, she felt she had left that part of her life behind. Now…now everything was messed up.

Her powers were trying to control her instead of the other way around, she had already placed two spells on Auradon and she wanted to stop.

_How did dad not notice this when he looked at me this morning on the balcony?_ Mal thought as she stood up.

"Leave me alone, mother!" Mal yelled, this time unleashing a ball of blue smoke from her hands, hitting a nearby tree. "Just go away!"

Walking deeper into the dark forest, Mal tried to calm down. She had just hit her best friend with her powers, she got angry at a voice in her head. What was wrong with her?

_Dad, where are you?_ Mal screamed mentally as she fell to the ground once again, her face in her hands as more tears formed. She sat there for what felt like an age but was probably more realistically half an hour, sobbing as she looked at the Ember which had fallen to the ground, still slightly glowing.

"What's happening to me?" Mal asked the woods, silence being her only answer. Pulling herself together and grabbing the Ember to prevent it from being lost, she stood up and walked into the woods. As she walked, her thoughts once again went to Evie and Ben.

_What have I done,_ she thought, looking at the Ember in her hands. _My wedding day is supposed to be the best day of my life. Now I'm battling myself thanks to you._

There was still a small part of her that wondered if it was the Ember or if it was her simply not believing in who she was.

_Look at me_

_I may never pass for a perfect bride,_

_Or a perfect daughter_

Mal sang softly to herself as she threw the Ember deep into the forest, forcing herself to get rid of the thing that was controlling her. Did her dad not know what it could do to her when he gave it to her?

Images once again flashed through her mind, this time of the day she snuck into his lair with Celia. _You're only half Hades, it won't do everything for you like it does for me_ echoed in her head, her father's voice feeling oddly comforting at that moment.

_Can it be_

_I'm meant to be this powerful._

_Now I see, that if I were truly to be myself_

_I would change into something_

_I don't want to be_

She sang as she kept sobbing, looking into the darkness of the forest before seeing blue in the distance. Walking closer toward the blue, Mal looked at the lake next to her. Stopping for a second, she looked at her reflection in the water.

_Who is that girl I see,_

_Staring straight back at me?_

_Why is my reflection_

_Someone I don't know?_

Sighing, Mal continued to sing softly to herself as she followed the blue light she could still see from afar. She didn't know if it was the Ember calling to her but whatever it was, it was pulling her closer.

_Somehow I cannot hide?_

_Who I am, though I've tried_

_Will my reflection show the real me_

_How I pray_

_That this will be over soon_

She reached the area where the Ember fell. Mal could see that it was floating and it felt like it was almost pulling her toward it. Mal tried to resist, tried her best not to touch it again.

_I can free myself,_

_From this power_

_That is taking over me_

_I'll discover some way to_

_Be myself_

She stopped singing as she looked at the Ember. It almost sounded like there was a faint voice coming from it. Frowning a little, Mal walked a little closer as she heard the voice again. Unless she was mistaken, her father's voice was coming from the Ember.

_Did he hear me calling for him or was this just another trick from my mother?_

Her doubts seemed to fade away as she heard her name come from the Ember, and there was no denying how much the voice sounded like her father's.

"Dad?" Mal gasped


	6. I hope you forgive me

Hades and Zelda returned to Auradon, making their way to the castle. However, when they arrived, they were shocked to see that the castle was in flames; making it impossible to go in. Thinking quickly, Zelda used her godly powers of the earth and extinguished the flames.

"Looks like no one's here," she said with a small sigh, using more of her powers to look inside the building to see if there was anyone trapped inside. "It's like…everyone has been sent to the Isle and the spell just keeps setting things it touched on fire."

"Let's check the chapel," Hades suggested. "Maybe Ben and the others are still there."

The two Gods made their way to the chapel but found no one there. Hades ran in only to start coughing due to the smoke still inside. Looking around, he saw that there was no one inside; only fire and ash. The picture above the alter had finally stopped burning, the only intact part being that of Mal's face.

"This is the work of the ember," Zelda said, following Hades as she tried her best to clear the smoke inside to make it easier for them to breathe and see.

"I wish I never gave it to her," Hades sighed, the rage he felt toward himself continuing to grow. How had he not seen how her powers were growing against her? Between that and the slight rage he felt toward Zeus for refusing to help, his rage had reached a boiling point. Not wanting to take it out on anyone, Hades turned and punched a nearby wall to try to soothe his steaming rage.

"You didn't know this was going to happen?" Zelda asked, walking up to him. Despite the fact that she appeared to be the same age as Mal, she was more mature—something that could only be contributed to her father Zeus. Hades sighed and shook his head.

"I thought it might be a possibility but I should have still taken the ember back once the barrier was broken," he told her as they walked out of the chapel and started making their way to the Enchanted Lake.

"Uncle, you must stop blaming yourself," Zelda told him. "There's no changing the past. What's done is done. Now, we can only find her and stop my cousin in time before it's too late."

She sighed. "I don't understand my father. You're nothing like how he's described you in his stories."

"There was a time when I was just pure evil, but…"

Hades paused, looking at the lake as a memory came to mind.

"But you fell in love with Maleficent?" Zelda asked gently, seemingly finishing his sentence. "Uncle, if you don't mind my asking, what happened between you two?"

Hades sighed. "After Persephone left me, I was enraged. Put all my focus into taking over Olympus and, of course, that backfired on me. Got myself landed on the Isle for my trouble. One day, though, I met Maleficent. One thing led to another and we had Mal."

Hades paused as the day he made probably the worst decision of his life came to mind.

_Hades smiled as he tossed Mal up in the air, trying to keep her happy. After her birth, something inside him changed from the moment he first laid eyes on her. He knew he would do anything to protect her, she was his everything. He so wished he could show her the world beyond the barrier but knew it was impossible. As long as that barrier was up, they were trapped on the Isle forever._

_"_ _Look at our little girl," Maleficent's voice broke through the silence, bringing Hades out of his thoughts. "One day, she'll grow big enough to be useful for my plan."_

_"_ _I told you last time. Stop using her as one of your minions," Hades said, placing Mal in her crib. It was getting close to her nap time if the yawn Mal let out was any indication. Laying her down, Hades grabbed a bottle for Mal._

_"_ _She's not my minion. She's my daughter and she will help me get revenge on those pampered royals who tossed us on this Gods forsaken Isle. She will be just like me," Maleficent told him, turning to look out the window at Auradon._

_Hades grabbed Maleficent's arm. "Don't you see? We're trapped here—there's no way out!"_

_"_ _There's always a way out," Maleficent said as she glared at Hades, yanking her arm out of his grasp, "and if I need to use her to get there I will."_

_Hades looked away from her as she let out a wicked cackle, choosing instead to look at Mal sleeping in her crib._

_"_ _Don't you want to go back to your world you had once before?" Maleficent asked and Hades knew, even without looking at her, that she had a wicked smile on her face._

_"_ _I am still the God of the Underworld," Hades growled. "No one can take that away from me. I will take my revenge without using my daughter to do it."_

_"_ _Don't you see you fool? One day, someone will come to the Isle to see these kids of ours. It's Auradon, how could they not? The pampered princes and spoiled princesses will have raised their brats to see the 'good' in everyone. When that day comes, I want her to be ready."_

_Both parents looked down at Mal, still sleeping in her crib._

_"_ _I…I need some air," Hades said, walking out to to the balcony and leaving Maleficent standing there. He looked up to the sky, black with clouds that blocked out the sun. An ever present sign of the barrier that kept them trapped on the Isle without powers or hope._

_"_ _Brother, why have you not come to look for me?" Hades whispered, still looking to the sky in hope that Zeus would hear him. Silence was his only response. He shook his head; he should have known they didn't care. For years, he had plotted to rule Mount Olympus and the world would have been at his feet. Now, he was trapped on a cramped Isle with other villains who were driving him crazier by the minute._

_Walking back inside, he found Maleficent was gone. He could only assume that she had gone to meet up with the Evil Queen to plot their evil plans. Looking down at his daughter, still sleeping in her crib, Hades sighed._

_"_ _Maybe if I'm gone, your mother will realize how special you are," Hades whispered. "Maybe she'll be a better parent than me."_

_Leaning down to plant a gentle kiss on her head, Hades continued, "I hope you'll forgive me one day for leaving. Your mother is driving me crazy with all her plots against Auradon. It's making me sick."_

_Walking to the door, he looked one last time over his shoulder to see his baby girl and then left._

"So, you see, I thought leaving her would be for her benefit. As the years passed, I opened up a little restaurant serving Souvlaki and a nightclub as well, staying in my lair most of the time. I would sometimes spy on Maleficent from afar as she raised Mal but she had grown too fast and was trying to become her mother."

"Why didn't you step in?" Zelda asked as they walked next to the lake.

"Mal was ten and she would have been very upset with me if I just showed up," Hades told her. "So I just kept spying. Then Celia, my errand rat, came and I stopped spying and asked her how Mal was. She never knew Mal was my daughter."

He paused and let out a small sigh. "One day, Celia came and told me that Mal had left the Isle to join Auradon Prep. I could see Maleficent's plans that she started all those years ago come to fruition and so I wanted to also get my revenge on the people of Auradon."

"What made you change your mind?"

"Mal did. I watched the coronation on TV and I could see how much she had grown there, how much she had fallen in love with Ben. When she challenged me in my lair all those months ago, I knew I could just be proud of her and not need my revenge. I left my revenge on the Isle when she broke the barrier and just held her the way a father should."

"Well that's actually a touching story," Zelda said, turning to look at him. "My father was wrong about you—and I will prove to him that Mal will have control over her powers as well."

"Thank you. That means a lot," Hades told her as they continued to move along the lake.


	7. Fire balls

Jane was on her phone by the Enchanted Lake, not far from where she had her birthday party not long ago. It was hard to believe that not so long ago, Audrey had stood here casting a sleeping curse over the party.

When the cloud of purplish-blue smoke began to drift over Auradon, Jane had to admit she felt a twinge of fear as she flashed back to her birthday party. Her first instinct was to run to the Enchanted Lake in case she needed to jump in, just as she had to prevent herself from being affected by Audrey's spell.

Before she had been able to jump in though, her phone had rang with her worried boyfriend on the other end.

"No, no don't come home. If I know Mal, she'll figure out what's going on," she told him, trying to reassure both him and herself. Carlos had left Auradon to go and study as a veterinarian, going against his mother's wishes. However, after Carlos had learned who his father was, he had his father's assurance that he'd take him and it was his father who supported Carlos in his new career.

"I'm trying to find Mal and Ben but so far, I haven't found them," she told him, hearing the worry in his voice over the phone. Oh, she wished he was here with her but she couldn't help but think it was better if she didn't let him know how she felt.

"Yeah, no, it's really not that bad. I promise."

She hated lying to him but the last thing she wanted was for him to leave everything he had been doing and the new life he'd built. Especially if it meant he'd be barreling into danger.

"Don't listen to everything the reporters say on TV. I promise when the wedding's over, I'll take the first flight out fo here to meet up with you." Jane told him but paused as she heard something in the distance. "Hey Carlos, I have to go. I'll talk to you later okay? I love you. Bye."

Hanging up her phone, she looked closer into the bushes. Before she could react, a three headed monster charged at her. Jane started to run, avoiding its attack and continued to run until her foot caught on a branch. She tripped and fell to the ground, covering herself with her arms to try to protect herself as a way to brace for the monster's attack. But it never came. Instead, she heard a moan from the monster and then only silence. Looking up, Jane smiled as she saw her friends standing over the monster's corpse; Ben holding a sword and one of the monster's heads lying by his feet.

"I was looking for you guys!" Jane said, looking at the monster. "What's happening? Where's Mal?"

Ben sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Mal's…Mal's gone bad," he said softly, pointing to the purplish-blue smoke. Before Jane could respond, a loud boom of thunder broke the silence as balls of fire rained from the sky.

"Take cover!" Ben shouted as they all ran under a rock for shelter, trying to protect themselves from the fireballs.

 _Why are Mal's powers only getting out of control now? Why all the spells? Was everything too much for her? Is this really her? Could this be someone else's doing?_ Ben thought as he stared at the balls of flames raining down on them.

"What's happening?!" Evie yelled as she held Dizzy tightly, bringing Ben out of his thoughts.

"Looks like it might be one of Mal's spells," Doug said, standing in front of Evie and trying his best to protect her and Dizzy. He wasn't going to lie, he was scared as hell but he loved Evie too much so he swallowed the fear and did his best to protect her and Dizzy.

"What are we going to do?" Dizzy asked. "We can't stay here. Those flames are burning the grass. It'll probably reach us soon!"

No one answered and all eyes fell on Ben, who was staring at the purple-blue sky which still had balls of fire raining down from it. He had to admit, Dizzy was right. If they didn't do something and something fast, they would be toast. He wished he knew what to do and how to get out of there but nothing came to mind. He sighed, turning to look at his friends but before he could say anything they all heard someone yelling something in what sounded like Greek. The fire stopped, even the flames that were creeping toward them were put out.

Coming out of their hiding spot, they saw a tall man standing at the lake, holding what looked like a trident. Next to him stood a young boy and a bit further saw Hades with a girl with golden red hair and brown eyes. Considering the voice they had heard had been female, Ben had to assume she had been the one who had yelled something in Greek. Considering none of them knew Greek, they all wondered exactly what she had done to stop the fire.

Hades walked up to them and looked at Ben, who quickly made sure his jacket was neat and tidy despite the barrage of fireballs that had just occurred. Ben would definitely admit that he still feared Lord Hades, not just because he was the God of the Underworld but also because he was Mal's father.

"Evie, well done in finding King Beastie here," Hades said as he stopped in front of them with the girl just steps behind him; the other two men still at the lake. "This is Zelda, Goddess of the Earth, and the one who just saved your lives."

"Thank you," Evie said to Zelda, who just smiled as she looked at the others.

"Have you all spotted Mal yet?" Zelda asked.

"Yes, but we lost her again," Evie told her, looking at the other two who were still standing at the lake. "Lord Hades, I'm sorry to ask but..who are they?"

"Oh right. That is my brother Poseidon and his son Percy. They've come to help," Hades told her, gesturing at the two to join them before turning back to Evie. "You said you found Mal, what happened?"

Ben couldn't help but shiver a little as he now stood in front of not one but four Gods who could crush them if they so chose. He only hoped that the shiver wasn't obvious, considering three of the Gods were also Mal's family.

"Lord Hades, I tried to get through to her. I really did," Evie said but paused as she rubbed her stomach. "The ember struck me as Mal held it in her hands and then she disappeared again. Lord Hades, there's…there's something else I believe you should know."

"Go on," Hades said as Poseidon and Percy joined the group.

"Her eyes were flickering between blue and green," Evie said. "What does that mean?"

The two brothers glanced at each other before looking back at Evie.

"My powers and Maleficent's powers are fighting each other inside her. Fairy magic against Godly powers," Hades told her.

"This means one thing. While her godly powers try to control her, her fairy powers are creating spells to overpower Mal," Poseidon said. "This is not good. Not good at all."

"So what's the plan?" Ben asked, pulling himself together.

"First we have to find Mal," Zelda answered, looking closely at Ben. "Then we need to separate her from the ember. It's the only way we can hope to weaken her."

"May I step in?" Percy asked, speaking for the first time.

"You may," Ben said, hardly able to believe that a _God_ was asking _him_ for permission to speak.

"Where did you guys last see her?"

"At the chapel," Evie answered, trying to not think of her best friend who attacked her.

"Okay. So where do you guys think she'd go after the chapel?" Percy asked, trying to get a sense of where his cousin would go.

"That's the problem. She had too many places. That's why we're here—this was one of the places she loved to hang out or disappear to," Ben told him.

"I have an idea," Hades said and everyone turned to look at him. "I'll call her through the ember."

"How?" Ben asked. "We don't have the ember."

"I have a connection with it. There's a reason why it's called _Hades'_ ember. No matter where it is, I can talk through it to whoever has it in their possession."

"That just might work," Zelda said, stepping back a bit. "Everyone, step back and give Lord Hades some room."

Everyone did just that. Hades closed his eyes and held out his hands, trying to sense the ember. Finally finding it, Hades sighed before speaking one word.

"Mal."


	8. Reaching out

"Dad?" Mal gasped, the ember still hovering in the air. As shocked as she was, she still stood there and listened as she heard his voice once more.

"Mal, are you okay?"

That was the first thing her dad asked her. Despite only hearing his voice, she could tell that he was worried about her. Losing control of one's powers could be frightening.

"Dad…I…I don't know what's happening," she said, sobbing slightly as she looked at the ember. "I saw this coming but I ignored it. Now all of Auradon's in danger!"

"Mal, this is how your powers work. Come to me, I can help you," Hades told her. "We will get through this. Together."

"How?" Mal asked, as tears continued to stream down her face. "Dad…I'm scared. Terrible things are happening."

"Bring the ember and I can show you how to control your powers."

That's what I meant by weakness. Your father has it—always putting others first.

"Go away," Mal muttered softly though not soft enough as Hades heard her through the ember.

"Mal, I'm not going anywhere. Listen to me."

Don't listen to a weak God like him Mal. I was always there for you, teaching you how to be like me.

"Go away mother!" Mal yelled, having missed what Hades had said as she held her head in her hands, trying to get her mother's to go away.

"Mal, your mother's not there. She can't harm you anymore," Hades told her, trying to get through to his daughter but the limitations of the ember making it so that he could only hear and not see her served to grow his frustrations. "Mal, it's me. Hades. Your father."

"She's in my head," Mal said, her voice a near whisper as she tried to focus on the ember and not her mother's voice. "She's trying to control me and I don't know how she's doing it."

"Mal, tell me where you are and I'll come get you," Hades said, trying to make sure his worry didn't come through his voice. "I can help you."

There was a brief moment of silence before Mal responded.

"Fine," she sighed. "I'm in the Enchanted Forest."

As Mal grabbed the ember, a shock rang through her body and she couldn't help but laugh. It wasn't her regular laugh however but one that was more like a cackle. Her mother was grabbing hold and it wasn't likely she'd let go.

"Stupid Hades, trying to save our daughter," Maleficent laughed as she looked through Mal's eyes at the ember and broke the connection Hades made. Mal's eyes now only glowed green. Maleficent's control of Mal was limited as Mal's body made its way to the museum, Mal trying to overthrow her mother's control.

Finally regaining control as she reached the museum, Mal looked at the museum and back to the ember in her hand.

What am I doing here? Mal thought as something inside her pushed her to go forward. She fought but failed, opening the doors to the museum.

Go on my dear. Get the scepter, her mother's voice rang through her head. Mal tried to resist but once again found herself falling to her mother's control

"Leave me alone mother!" Mal yelled to the empty museum, grabbing her head once more. It felt as if her head was going to explode.

Mal, get me my scepter.

Mal's eyes started to flicker again, alternating between green and blue. Her mother's powers and her father's were still at war, clashing against each other inside of Mal. To add Maleficent clamoring for control…Mal knew she had to escape somehow.

However, by the time she came to that realization, she found herself standing in front of the scepter as her mother's voice echoed in her head.

"Why mother?" Mal asked, trying to stop herself but it was as if she was a doll for someone else to use for their own enjoyment.

You shrank me into a lizard and took over Auradon yourself. Grab that scepter!

"I will not do what you want me to do!" Mal yelled, somehow gaining the strength to force her mother out of her mind. Panting, she kneeled on the ground in front of the scepter as the ember glowed in her hand. She looked up to stare at the scepter, tears welling up in her eyes. She couldn't help but feel lost and yet proud as she had defeated her mother's hold on her for the second time.

As she stood up, she couldn't help but start to sing softly to herself.

How will I know there's

A path worth taking

Should I question every move

I make

Walking away from the scepter, Mal paused as the ember in her hand glowed brighter. It was a clear indication that her powers were once again growing stronger. Being as close to the scepter as she was, Mal knew she couldn't control her powers but she was determined to try; continuing to sing under her breath.

I doubt in my dreams

They will never come true

I blamed the world

But never blamed me

I will never live a lie again

Gods, I can't believe I had lied to Evie about the plan to close the barrier, Mal thought. The look on Evie's face when she found out that Mal had lied still haunted Mal. Looking over her shoulder at the scepter, Mal quickly looked back to the ember.

I don't wanna win this game

If I can't play it my way

I wanna stop this madness

This is not who I am

Pushing herself away from the scepter, Mal couldn't help but think back on her father's voice in the forest. He had been trying to help her but her mother had won out. If she'd been a little stronger, maybe she wouldn't be wrestling with this dilemma.

"These powers of mine

Has plans of their own

And I don't want this"

As if on a whim, Mal looked to her left and paused as she saw her reflection. Looking closer, she could see her eyes were still flickering between blue and green while her hair was still burning blue flames—just like her father's hair did.

"It's not good at all

To see yourself and

Not recognize your own face

Out on my own

Its such a scary place"

As she stared at her reflection, she couldn't help but think of Ben. The first time they met. How she had spelled him with the cookie only to fall in love with him. She remembered his words: Right now, I can look into your eyes and I can tell you're not evil.

A tear ran down her cheek as she thought back on their first date. She tried her best to push her powers away from her but it wasn't working. Determined though, she kept singing as images of Ben proposing to her and her asking Evie to be her made of honor ran through Mal's head.

"The answers are all

Inside of me

All I gotta do is

Believe"

As she finished singing, she walked off; leaving the scepter behind and smiling slightly. She had to admit, it felt good having not touched it. The good feeling vanished however as she stepped outside only to see blackness and smoke. Everything was destroyed as far as she could see.

"Ben!" Mal screamed, hoping to find him in time before her powers took control once more. Little did she know that she was seeing the future through the ember. As she walked to the garden, Mal couldn't help but look around her in shock. Everything had truly been destroyed, burned to ash.

"Hello! Ben?!" Mal called again as the ember in her hand started to glow once more.

"No," she muttered, noticing it and trying hard to control her powers. This was all her fault, she had to try to fix it somehow. She just didn't know where to start. As she kept walking, she approached the castle where she had been preparing for her wedding early that morning. Gods, had it really only been that morning? This had been where it had all started, where her powers had taken over.

She looked at the castle, shocked to see that it was burnt black but most of the building was still standing. She entered, hoping to see Ben or at least someone who could tell her where Ben was.

Instead all she saw was an incredibly realistic statue of Ben. If Mal didn't know better, she'd have sworn that was…

"No! No, no! Ben!"

Brushing the statue's face with her fingertips, Mal fell to her knees as she sobbed once more. The ember glowed again and Mal closed her eyes, trying to block out her powers but this time it wasn't enough. As her eyes closed again, Mal was transported back to the the present as she stood inside the empty castle. Mal didn't want to open her eyes. She didn't want to see the statue of Ben.

Then, however, the ember whispered to her. Mal didn't know why but she felt the need to whisper back.

"All be cold and dark as snow."

As she said the spell, outside a terrible snowstorm began as snow started to cover most of the burnt buildings or putting out the purplish blue flames still making their way through the remaining buildings. A strong wind picked up, blowing so hard it made the trees bend sideways or picking up anything in its path from bikes to some of the cars on the road.

Mal opened her eyes as they once again flickered between blue and green. She started to laugh as her powers overtook her once again. Getting up, she stalked off.


	9. Hadie and Uma

While all the excitement was going on in Auradon, over on the Isle of the Lost the citizens who had elected to stay had come out to see that not only had the barrier returned but that Auradon citizens were now within their midst. One of the kids who had chosen to stay noticed an Auradon kid shaking like a leaf. He could only assume she was an Auradon kid based on how she was dressed.

Most of the kids from the Isle had more leather in their outfits, probably because it was easier to maintain or because it was the only material available. Whatever the reason, the fact that this girl didn't have any proved that she was either an Auradon kid or someone like Dizzy or Evie who imagined themselves an Auradon Kid…but even Evie or Dizzy wouldn't shake like that.

The fact that she was wearing purple was also a clear sign that she was from the other side of the bridge. Only Mal wore purple on the Isle. Rick Ratcliffe tried once. He spent a week with smoke bomb residue teaching him why that was a bad idea. Mad Maddy also tried, and if she had stayed friends with Mal back when they were three she might have been able to get away with it.

Though Mal's monopoly on purple was more of a darker purple and this girl was wearing a lighter shade that was also clearly more of an Auradon thing.

"What are you doing here?" He asked as he walked up to her, but the blonde stepped back, obviously afraid of him. He probably looked rather intimidating with his black leather clothing and dark blue hair. "It's okay, look I won't hurt you."

"I don't know what happened," the girl said, her voice soft and the fear still audible as her eyes darted around as if trying to find someone she knew or someone who might be able to help her. "One minute I was standing outside in the garden talking to King Ben and then then next I'm here."

He couldn't help but look over her shoulder to see her golden hair trailing what had to be feet behind her. That would have be taken care of before anything else happened; if they needed to run or sneak around, they'd be spotted in a heartbeat.

"Oh! I'm Ruby. My mom's Rapunzel," she said, pulling his attention back to her. "But you probably guessed that from the hair."

"I'm Hadie, son of Hades," he told her and he could see her expression change from one of fear to one of hope, like he could help her get home.

"You're Lord Hades' son. Like in Mal's little brother?" Ruby asked, looking him up and down. Hadie nodded but before he could say anything in response, they were interrupted by a _very_ familiar laugh.

"Uma!" Hadie exclaimed, whirling around and crossing his arms.

"Well, well, well, looks like we have another AK here," Harry said, walking up to them as Uma stood there and looked at Ruby.

"What do you want Hook?" Hadie asked as he stood in front of Ruby, trying to protect the frightened girl from the pirates. "Also…where's Gil?"

"We're rounding up all the AKs, Gil's watching them to make sure they don't run off and get hurt," Uma told him, walking closer to the two of them. "For some reason the barrier's back up and we want answers."

"Wait, you can't possibly think we put the barrier back up?" Ruby asked despite her fear. "Why would we do that? Mal's been a fantastic Queen to be and Ben would rather die than put the barrier up or close the Isle at all!"

"Well from what I've heard, a great darkness has covered Auradon and has sent most of the Auradonian people along with the other VKs to be banished here," Hadie told his cousin, looking Uma straight in the eye.

"Wait, what darkness?" Uma asked, looking a little taken aback. "I came back to the Isle to fetch something for Mal. When I tried to leave, I saw that the barrier was back up."

"You don't know then?" Hadie asked, a small laugh to his voice as he looked to Ruby and then back to Uma. "All I know is that I was watching the television when Snow White said that there was purplish blue smoke covering most of Auradon and burning whatever it touches."

"Well this sounds like your father's work," Uma said angrily. "And if it is, and if I know Mal, she won't be happy with him turning his back on her."

"I don't think it's his work," Hadie said softly.

"Why?" Uma asked, crossing her arms as Harry subtly fingered his hook. "Last I heard, he wanted revenge on the Auradon people."

Hadie sighed. "It's not his work because of Mal," he said before turning around and walking over to a nearby table. He picked up a photo of Ben, Mal and Hades before turning back to Harry, Uma and Ruby. "You see this photo? Ben came around looking for me last month, asking me if I wanted to join Auradon Prep. I said no."

"Why stay here?" Harry asked. "You could rule with your sister if you went across the bridge."

Hadie sighed. "When I said no, Ben gave me this and promised that Mal would help anytime we needed it. You see, my mother was a sidekick to one of the worst villains known to anyone. She told me I must never trust my father. So I'd rather stay here than go there, in their world."

"But you're saying it's _not_ Hades? Why?" Uma asked.

"Because when Ben left this here, he told me that Mal had changed dad's heart and that he no longer wanted revenge on Auradon."

"I see," Uma sighed. "So…who else could this be?"

Hadie could only shake his head, he didn't know the answer anymore than his cousin did. Glancing over toward Auradon, the darkness that was surrounding it only made Hadie thankful for the barrier for the first time in his life. Sure it meant he couldn't get out…but it meant that whatever was causing that darkness couldn't get in.

The only bad thing was that Uma couldn't help Mal solve what was going on seeing as she was once again stuck on the Isle with the others. Judging by the darkness, Mal was going to need all the help she could get.

"Look…we should work together," Uma said, looking at her little cousin. "I worked with your sister once, to take down Sleeping Brat. I'll work with you now. We need to break the barrier. We need to help Mal. Besides, as much fun as it is to see AKs cowering behind the barrier and finally see what it was like for us all those years, I can't put up with their whining for much longer."

"Sounds good," Hadie sighed. "What's the plan?"

Uma took out her mother's necklace and smiled at him. Hadie wasn't going to lie, he felt chills running down his spine at the sight.

"Let's see what this puppy can do," she said with a smirk.


	10. Snowstorm

Hades fell on his back, clutching his chest. Something had been shot at him but there was nothing to be seen. He knew what it was, the ember had made a hit against him.

Looking up as he felt hands around him, he saw Ben and Poseidon helping him up.

"I'm fine," he told them, pushing them off of him as he rose to his feet.

"What happened, brother?" Poseidon asked.

Hades sighed. "Mal wasn't holding the ember when I spoke to her. I could feel her touching it again but then her voice changed."

He paused as he thought back on his conversation with his daughter. "Someone else spoke through Mal, almost taunting me. _Laughing_ at me."

"Do you know who it was?" Zelda asked, walking up and standing next to her uncles.

"Yes," Hades nodded and sighed once more. "It's Maleficent. She spoke of Mal as our daughter. It actually explains a lot now that I think about it."

"But you said you already checked on Maleficent and she was still a lizard," Evie spoke up.

"The only thing I can think of is that she somehow learned to use her magic on Mal while maintaining her lizard form," Hades said, answering the blue haired girl.

"What do we do now?" Ben asked, looking over at his future father-in-law.

"We split up," Hades said. "We need to find Mal and we need to get to lizard Maleficent."

Ben nodded. "Alright. I'll go with you to find Mal. Evie and Jane can go back to get Maleficent."

"That sounds like a plan. Poseidon and his son can join the group going to get Maleficent, I'll go with you two to find Mal," Zelda said.

Everyone nodded and headed off in their respective groups. Evie, Dizzy, Jane, Doug, Poseidon and his son headed off to the castle to grab Maleficent. As for the others, they made their way to the Enchanted Forest to find Mal. Only once they arrived there, Hades, Zelda and Ben quickly found that there was no one there.

Hades couldn't help but cross his arms over his chest as he looked around, trying to catch a glimpse of the familiar purple hair. Zelda shuddered slightly as the air around seemed to get cooler. As if prompted, she looked to the sky and saw that the sky was turning darker. Unbeknownst to her, a single white snowflake landed on her skin.

"Mal!" Ben called out, looking to the Enchanted Lake. He couldn't help but hope that she was still nearby. However, all he could see was the lake freezing before his eyes as snowflakes began to fall around them.

"Wait, winter just passed about a month ago. What's going on?" Ben asked as he turned to look at Hades, who in turn turned to look at Zelda.

"Mal must have placed a spell again," Zelda answered as the wind picked up, blowing the snow around and obscuring their vision.

"We need to get inside," Hades said, walking off to Auradon Prep that was thankfully nearby. Ben and Zelda followed, trying to walk faster with every step as the wind got stronger by the minute.

Zelda stopped, closing her eyes as she started to whisper something in Greek. Noticing that she'd stopped, the two males paused and looked at her as she stretched her arms out.

"What is she doing?" Ben asked, hollering to be heard over the wind.

"She's using her powers to try and stop the snowstorm," Hades answered, also needing to shout to be heard.

Zelda stopped what she was doing and looked over at the two of them. "Her powers are growing stronger. I could only slow the storm down but I'm not able to stop it."

"Let's get inside and we can talk about our next steps in finding my daughter. Midnight is seven hours from now," Hades told her. He couldn't help the worried feeling in the pit of his stomach. He knew how cruel his brother could be and he would not leave Mal alone. But Hades also knew that it would mean war against the Gods if Zeus killed Mal.

 _I don't care if he thinks this is my punishment for what I did to Wonderbreath but he's still alive and kicking,_ Hades thought with an inward sigh.

"Wait, what's happening at midnight?" Ben asked with a look of concern on his face, his question pulling Hades out of his thoughts.

"Ben…let's just say that if Mal doesn't stop this madness by midnight tonight, there'll be a war between the Gods," Hades told him, leaving out the part about Zeus wanting to _kill_ Mal. Hades didn't think Ben would take it well if he knew that his beloved was to be killed tomorrow. Though Hades wouldn't let that happen. Mal was his daughter, he would protect her for as long as he lived.

And considering that there weren't anymore of those potions to remove a Gods' immortality, that was basically forever.

"Then we need to find Mal. Fast," Ben said as they scurried into the school to get cover from the storm. Meanwhile, the group tasked with gathering the lizard version of Maleficent entered Mal's room. To their surprise, it was still in one piece; untouched from the flames that had consumed and destroyed almost everything by this point. Evie made her way to the cage where Maleficent was kept.

"Okay, so how do we carry her? That cage seems like it would be rather cumbersome should we need to run," Poseidon pointed out from his spot in the doorway. He'd have entered but he barely knew his niece. He didn't feel it was right for him to enter her room when they had yet to be introduced.

"I'll use the box Mal used to carry her when she left for the Isle last time," Evie answered, finding the box lying nearby.

"Evie…can I stay here please?" Dizzy asked, her voice soft as she was still scared of everything that was going on. Doug walked up, wrapping his arms around the younger girl as he looked over at Evie.

"I'll stay here with her. We can try to see if there are others who haven't disappeared," he said as Dizzy looked up at him.

"I'll help," Jane said, sitting down on Mal's bed.

"Perhaps it would be best if you three tried to free those trapped on the Isle," Poseidon stated. "Mal placed a spell on Auradon so that everyone, or mostly everyone it seems, was transported back to the Isle of the Lost."

"I can find out if Uma's here or on the Isle," Jane said, looking over at the God of the Sea.

"Uma's on the Isle, last I checked she was heading back there with her crew to get something," Percy said, speaking up for the first time since arriving at Mal's room. Before anyone else could say anything, the windows began to rattle as they heard the wind roaring outside. Everyone rushed to the window and couldn't help but be shocked as they saw white all around them.

"That's a snowstorm. A bad one from the looks of it," Evie gasped. "How are we going to get back to Hades if we can't leave?"

"Evie, maybe the more important question is how is it snowing in the beginning of Spring?" Jane asked, looking over at Poseidon and his son.

"It's got to be Mal," Percy answered, looking to the sky as it darkened. "Her powers seem to be growing faster than we had imagined."

"Let's stop this son," Poseidon said as he held out his hand for his son to take. Percy nodded, taking the offered hand as the two Olympians closed their eyes and began to whisper something in Greek.

Everyone looked at them for a minute before the snowstorm seemed to quiet down, leaving everything covered in a blanket of white. Evie couldn't help but smile slightly as she placed Maleficent in the box and sealed it; thankful Mal had thought to provide air holes the last time she had taken Maleficent out of Auradon.

"You did it," Doug said softly before looking over at Evie. "Please be careful."

"I will. Try to find Uma on the Isle. Hopefully the remote will still work with this barrier," Evie said as she gave him a gentle peck on the lips. They all walked out of Mal's room, splitting into their groups and ready to complete their respective missions. Meanwhile, Hades' group wandered the burnt hallways as they made their way to Mal and Evie's old dorm to wait for the storm to pass.

 _Gods, how am I going to find Mal?_ Ben thought as they continued to make their way to Mal's old dorm. _I hope I'll be able to get her back before midnight. A war between the Gods does not sound good…and yet I can't help but shake the feeling that Hades is hiding something from me._

"What else is going to happen tonight?" Ben spoke up as they turned a corner, causing Hades and Zelda to freeze mid-step. They looked at each other before turning to Ben.

"My father, Zeus, is angry at Hades, so he told us that if we don't stop Mal by tonight, there'll be war," Zelda answered but she could see that answer didn't satisfy the King.

"Beastie boy, just focus on finding Mal," Hades told him, trying to dodge the question. That turned out to be a mistake.

"Oh so now I'm Beastie boy?!" Ben exclaimed. "Don't hate me for what my father did to you! That decision was made four years before I was even _born_!"

"Well I'm sorry to say but you do sometimes act like your father," Hades shot back. "Don't think I don't know what you did to Mal at Cotillion."

He turned to stand in front of Ben, the King of Auradon staring down the God of the Underworld.

"I was under a spell!" Ben told him. "Not the first time either, Mal spelled me in the beginning."

"She had her reason; she was trying to impress her mother by doing _exactly_ what Maleficent wanted otherwise Mal would have been in danger," Hades growled at his future son-in-law. "You think you know Mal but you don't. I may not have been in her life but I have watched from the distance as Maleficent abused her!"

"And I gave Mal a better life than both of you!" Ben told him, clearly upset. "I love her, and I demand to know what is truly going on!"

"You _love_ her?! What do you know about love, you're still a child!" Hades shot back, angrier than he'd been before.

"Stop it, both of you," Zelda said, jumping between the two of them and pushing them apart so that there was some distance between the two males. It was clear that if she didn't intervene, it was going to get very ugly. "You both love her so stop fighting and start to find a way to help Mal out of this mess."

"I want answers, Zelda," Ben said as he looked over at her and crossed his arms over his chest. "What's going to happen to Mal?"

Zelda sighed and looked over at her uncle. "Tell him."

"Zeus wants to kill Mal," Hades said softly. "I told him if he did that, then there'll be war."

"No!" Ben shouted.

"Ben, I promise, he's not going to get the chance," Hades said, resting a hand on Ben's shoulder. "But we need to stop Mal before midnight tonight if we're going to make sure of that."

"Guys, look," Zelda said, pointing to the window and preventing Ben from responding. "The storm stopped."

Ben sighed. "Let's move," he said as he walked off. The two Olympians looked at each other before following him.


	11. The Isle of the lost

Even though four months had passed since the barrier separating the Isle of the Lost from the rest of Auradon was taken down, life hadn't changed much for the Isle's citizens. The daily food deliveries still contained rotten food, old clothes were still delivered every week.

Ben had given orders to change this however, with all the pressures of the wedding and the additional ceremonies to get Mal coronated as Queen, it had slipped his mind to check to make sure change had _actually_ been implemented for the Isle.

Now, however, the citizens of Auradon had the chance to experience _exactly_ what the citizens of the Isle faced every day. The Auradonians, some of whom had never once set foot on the Isle after the barrier was taken down, were now trapped there just as the villains and VKs had been for twenty years.

Belle sighed as she walked the dirty streets of the Isle she and her husband had helped to set up. It had been one thing to hear Mal and her friends talk about what the Isle was going through. It was another thing entirely to experience it herself.

_We should have done more,_ she thought. _How did I spend twenty years and not think about the Isle? How did Adam not once wonder how his own citizens were faring? Sure they had been our enemies once upon a time but Ben's right. They're still people. And as Ben had said the day he told us about his first proclamation, the children are innocent in all of this._

As she continued to make her way down the streets of the Isle, Belle was aware of the dirty looks she received from passersby. Nothing much had changed in that regard, she had heard the comments that were muttered the day the barrier was taken down.

"Now they care about us, because four kids said to…"

"We're not stupid, they still fear us…"

"Better to stay here then to go and pretend to be like them…"

And of course, where the villains stayed so did their children. Belle could still remember that fateful day on the bridge, when most of the villains made the collective decision to stay on the Isle.

They had told Mal that they would always respect her. However, they had turned to Ben and told him that they would never respect him, that it had been his father's mistake to banish them to the Isle for twenty years and never give them a second thought. That they didn't want his pity and that he couldn't give them back the time stolen from them.

Her heart broke, seeing the look on Ben's face. It had taken suppressing every instinct Belle had to not rush up and engulf Ben in her arms, promising him she'd make everything better just as she used to when he was a little boy and had fallen.

But Mal then took his hand and whispered something in Ben's ear. Whatever it was had made Ben smile slightly before making a speech to the villains about how he hoped to be better than his father had been, that he hoped to one day gain the respect they were giving Mal, before they left with the other VKs who wanted off the Isle.

As she continued to make her way through the Isle, Belle couldn't help but hear voices around a nearby corner. Her heart leapt to her throat, she wasn't skilled with a sword like Mulan or even a frying pan like Rapunzel. She truly feared for her life and so quickly ducked into Hades' restaurant. Glancing back onto the streets, Belle checked to see exactly who it was who was coming and, more importantly, if they had seen her.

"My sister is stronger than that. If it's true, dad'll help her."

"I know Mal and what her powers had been four months ago. I don't know how to explain it to you Hadie," Uma's voice stated. "When I was helping her, I could feel her powers against mine. They were growing."

"But she won't hurt anyone," Hadie said, stopping in front of his father's restaurant. "This is my _sister_ we're talking about Uma."

"I know but you heard that reporter, Mal's behind all of this," Uma said, looking at Hadie. "Look, I'm still going to help Mal. We're friends again and friends stick together. Plus she didn't kill me for the whole putting Ben under a love spell thing and ruining her cotillion so I guess I owe her for that."

"You're family too," Hadie pointed out.

Uma smiled slightly before sighing. "Look, let's just see if Steph's in the shop. She might be able to help," the daughter of Ursula stated as they walked into the restaurant before pausing as they saw the former Queen trying to hide behind one of the shelves, holding some goods.

"Uh Belle? Why are you hiding?"

Belle walked out of her hiding spot, setting the goods back on the shelf as she relaxed; seeing that it was Uma. "I..I was just trying to be safe. I have no idea where Adam is or if he's even on the Isle and I'm not the most skilled with a sword…"

"Don't worry, you're with us now," Hadie told her as he walked up to the counter. Belle gave the younger boy a small smile before looking over at Uma.

"Uma, I couldn't help but overhear what you two were discussing. Is…is it true?"

"Yes Belle, it's true," Uma sighed. "Look, I know Mal. We grew up together, just because we were enemies for a time doesn't change that fact. This is her powers taking over."

"But why now? Why on her wedding day?"

"Fear, possibly," Uma shrugged. "The barrier may be back up but I can still feel my powers. Though that might just be due to the four months I had access to them. Anyway, it's why we're here. We're trying to find Persephone, maybe together we can break through this barrier."

Belle nodded, that sounded like a solid plan.

"Uma…I'm sorry," she said softly as she looked down.

Uma looked at the former Queen in shock. "Why?"

"Being here, seeing the Isle…I can't help but feel like this is all my fault," Belle said, her voice soft. "I should have listened to you when you were talking about how the place looked."

"No hard feelings Belle. I understand. It's in the past," Uma told her. Before Belle could say anything, she could hear someone calling her name.

"Belle, what on Earth are you doing here?" Persephone asked as she came out of the kitchens, Hadie having gotten her.

"Mal spelled us to be banished back to the Isle. I'm guessing that spell included everyone but I haven't seen Adam and I…I haven't seen Ben," Belle told her, biting her lip in worry as she looked at the other three.

Persephone frowned slightly. If she was honest, she hadn't even noticed that everyone had returned to the Isle, she had been so busy making the preparations for the wedding tonight. But now that Belle had told her, Persephone noticed a distinct lack of sunlight."What's going on?"

"We think Mal's in trouble," Hadie told her.

"Everyone's being sent here and there's this purple-bluish smoke that's covering all of Auradon," Uma explained.

"Has there been any sign of Hades?" Persephone asked.

_Why didn't he come and warn me? Unless…unless he's somehow still in Auradon with Mal? After all, Mal did give Hades a second chance._

"He's in Auradon," Uma said. "Hadie and I heard a reporter on TV, he said that Uncle Hades and Ben are busy with Grandfather in looking for Mal before anything else happens. So far, she's made it rain fire and caused a snowstorm."

"I see. Well at least he used his head for a change and enlisted Poseidon," Persephone sighed. "What's your plan Uma?"

"We can barely use our powers so the two of us aren't strong enough. I was thinking that if another God, like say you, were to help me and Hadie, we could break the barrier before everything is destroyed."

"I'm sorry, _destroyed_?" Belle asked, looking over at Uma in shock.

Uma sighed. "The northern side of the Isle is sinking into the sea. I don't know if that's part of Mal's spell but if I can get out of here, I can save the Isle with my powers."

"And I can help get the Isle back above sea level before everyone drowns," Hadie nodded.

"Alright then, let's go," Persephone sighed before turning to Belle. "It might be better if you stayed here. No one dares to come in here, they're too scared of what Hades might do to them if they do."

Belle could only nod as she looked around the restaurant.

_Persephone was the only one who did anything for the Isle,_ she thought. _Gods, when I think about all the things Persephone had packed when she returned to the Isle after the barrier was removed. How she requested more foods that weren't commonly found, like fresh milk and meat._

"No," Belle said softly, the three Isle dwellers pausing in their tracks.

"What's wrong?" Persephone asked, looking at Belle in surprise.

"I'm coming with you. It's bad enough I did nothing for these people for the last twenty years, I'm not going to sit by while their home sinks into the sea," Belle stated.

"Belle, it's dangerous out there," Persephone told her as she walked up to the former Queen, gently resting a hand on her arm. "We at least have our powers and you're not exactly the most popular person here right now."

"I can at least be a lookout. Make sure no one sneaks up on you," Belle stated. "Please, Persephone. I just want to help."

Persephone opened her mouth but then closed it as she realized that Belle did have a point. There were still people on the Isle who hated them, hated _Hades_ , and would do anything to make sure he suffered.

"…okay," Persephone said softly. She wasn't sure what Belle could do against villains but at least she'd be with them and not on her own on the Isle. The four of them headed out, making their way toward the bridge to try to see if their combined power would be enough to free them…and allow them to help Mal before it was too late.


	12. Encounter

Mal walked up to the bridge as her eyes continue to glow, alternating between blue and green. Her hair continued to burn bright blue like her father's, only now it seemed to go all the way down to her arms. The sky above her was still covered by the purplish-blue smoke, smoke that had grown so thick that it continued to block out the sunlight.

Leaning on the entrance to the bridge, Mal sighed. "I can't do this anymore."

She began to make her way onto the bridge, the ember in her hand glowing brighter. She could feel its power coursing through her veins. She closed her eyes, never noticing that the sky above her started growing darker as well.

"Mal!"

Mal's eyes flew open and she looked around. Had…had that been _Ben's_ voice she heard? No, that wasn't possible, he was a statue wasn't he?

"Mal!"

There it was again! Ben's voice and it seemed to come from…behind her?

Mal turned around and saw that she hadn't been imagining anything. Ben, Zelda and her father were standing far enough away as to avoid being hit by the ember but close enough that they could be heard. Hades held Ben back as Zelda started walking closer to Mal, holding up her hands as if to show Mal that she meant no harm.

"Mal, listen to me," Zelda said softly as she closed the distance between herself and her cousin. "I can help."

"Who are you?" Mal asked, griping the ember tighter as her eyes glanced to Ben, who was still being held back by Hades.

"I'm Zelda, daughter of Zeus," Zelda said but stopped as she saw that Mal's eyes had stopped alternating between blue and green, settling on a bright blue.

"Your father helped with the barrier!" Mal growled, shooting an energy bolt at Zelda before she could react. Somehow, she was able to dodge the bolt in time and fired an attack back at Mal. Using the ember, which continued to glow bright blue, Mal fired off another energy bolt which collided in midair with that of her cousin's.

"Lord Hades, let me go," Ben exclaimed as he struggled against Hades' grip. "I can get through to Mal!"

He didn't care about the potential danger, he didn't care about what would happen to Auradon should he get hurt or worse. All he wanted was to have Mal back in his arms, to calm her down. He couldn't help but wonder, as he took in the scene in front of him, how this all happened in the first place.

"Ben…" Hades said and then paused. He really couldn't take the risk if Ben got hurt. Mal would never forgive herself if that happened. But the two _were_ True Love after all. Maybe Ben _could_ get through where he and Zelda had failed?

Hades was pulled from his thoughts as Zelda crashed into the ground mere inches from them, a purplish-blue smoke was all that remained of where Mal had stood.

"…she vanished again," Ben said softly, barely feeling Hades loosening his grip on him as the Lord of the Underworld went to go help up his niece.

"Uncle Hades…Mal's powers…they're stronger than mine," Zelda said softly, giving her uncle a worried look before glancing over at the spot where she'd fought Mal.

"Why didn't you let me talk to her?" Ben asked, looking over at Hades.

Hades turned around and looked at his future son-in-law but as he opened his mouth, he found for the first time he didn't know what to do nor did he know what to say.

"What happened?" A familiar voice called, preventing Hades from answering and inadvertently coming to his rescue. The three of them looked as Evie, Poseidon, and Percy came from around the castle and walked over to them. Poseidon looked over at Zelda in concern and a hint of worry.

"I'm fine Uncle," Zelda said softly. "I'll be able to walk it off."

"We had an encounter with Mal," Hades explained.

"I still say I could have talked to her," Ben sighed, causing Evie to frown slightly as she heard that.

"Why didn't he speak to her?" Evie asked as she turned to Hades. While she didn't want to question a God, especially with so many around her at the moment, but she was curious. "Mal would do anything to protect Ben."

"I wasn't thinking," Hades said before running his hand through his hair and looked at the tiny box that resided in Evie's hands. "Is that…?"

"Yes, this is Maleficent," Evie nodded, handing the tiny box to Hades. He took it carefully, making sure not to drop it. The last thing he wanted was for his ex-wife to be let loose. He opened the box to see Maleficent in her lizard form looking straight at him. She paused, as if not expecting to see the God, before hissing at him.

"No. You don't hiss at me," Hades growled. "Our daughter is in trouble and all you can do is try and control her like you've done her whole life."

"Brother, perhaps we should transform her back into her Fae self?" Poseidon suggested.

"Yeah, I'm not a fan of that," Ben said sharply.

"We don't have a choice Ben," Zelda said softly. "If Maleficent could get through to her the first time by trying to control her, then maybe we can get her to help us bring back Mal in exchange for her freedom."

"She'll just try to destroy us again!"

"Not if I talk to her alone," Hades said with a sigh before turning to his brother. "How will we turn her back?"

"We need the assistance of another God. Proteus might help but he's not popular amongst the mortals. However, he does owe me a favor."

"Evie, Ben, Zelda, I want you three to see if you can find Mal again. But whatever you do don't go near her," Hades stated, looking at Ben. 'Ben, I mean it. I know you love her but for Auradon's sake, don't go near her."

"Uncle Hades is right," Percy nodded. "We'll go to Proteus and get him to turn Maleficent back. Just stay as safe as possible."

"Let's go then," Poseidon said and the three Gods left, leaving a Goddess and two mortals alone. Ben looked over at Evie.

"Evie, I can't just stay away from her," he said softly, the conversation unnoticed by Zelda as she was looking off toward the Isle.

"I know Ben," Evie sighed. "So we make our own plan. Together."


	13. Maleficent is back

**Chapter 13**

Back on the Isle, Belle, Persephone, Uma and Hadie stood in front of the barrier. They could see that the stone bridge was still in place so they had an easy way to get to the other side. For now, their only barrier was just that. The barrier.

Persephone sighed softly and looked over at Belle. "You should hide," she told the former queen. "It's not safe for you out in the open."

"I can help," Belle insisted.

"You can help by watching our backs," Uma told her.

"That's right," Persephone nodded. "We'll need to be focused on taking down the barrier. If anyone tries something, just yell…"

She paused as she tried to think of a word that would work to scare off anyone who might try to attack.

"Beast?" Belle suggested, knowing full well of the Isle's hatred of her husband.

"No," Hadie told her, shaking his head. "It's got to be something that would scare anyone on the Isle. All that would do is make the attacker angry."

"Maybe…maybe it would be better to scream 'hyenas'," Uma said, her voice soft. "After all, everyone on the Isle fears them. Well, everyone but me, Mal and our allies."

"Wait, why is that?" Belle asked. She remembered that she and Adam had put Shenzi and her cackle on the Isle.

"That's a long story and Mal should be the one to tell it," Uma told her before she sighed as she remembered what they were trying to do. "We're running out of time, we need to focus."

"Uma's right," Hadie nodded. "We need to do this now."

"You guys remember the spell I told you while we were heading over here?" Uma asked.

"Yes," Hadie and Persephone nodded. Belle went to hide behind some old crates and wood panels as Persephone, Uma and Hadie stood in front of the barrier, each one holding the other's hand. Uma held her free hand up to the barrier and the three of them started the same spell she and Mal had used not just four months ago.

_"You caused us pain and fear, we've had enough now disappear!"_

The barrier flickered, disappearing for a few seconds allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief before it came back up.

"We don't have enough power," Persephone sighed, looking over at Uma. "Mal's powers must be getting stronger."

Uma frowned, her fingers brushing against her shell necklace as if hoping it held the answers to their problem. Her mother couldn't help them as she had disappeared into the ocean the moment the barrier was removed four months ago. She had left Uma on her own…but not really. As long as she had Harry, Uma was never truly alone.

She shook her head slightly to clear her thoughts. Right now she couldn't think about that. She had to try to think about who else had Godly powers they could turn to for help with this. Just as she was going to turn to sit down, the spell having taken a lot out of her, Hadie yelled and pointed to the bridge.

Uma turned to see three figures heading their way. She could recognize two of the three and couldn't help but smile slightly as Evie and Ben stopped on the other side of the barrier. She'd worry about introductions to the new girl later.

"Evie, Ben, I'm so glad to see you two," Uma said, walking up to their side of the barrier. Hadie quickly joined her as Belle came out of hiding and went to stand next to Persephone who was standing behind the VKs as if to provide some protection during the conversation.

"Mom, thank Gods!" Ben sighed in relief.

"I know Ben," Belle nodded, giving her son a small smile which Ben returned before he looked over at Uma.

"Uma, what did you guys do? We saw that the barrier was down for a few seconds?"

"We tried Mal's spell but it backfired," Uma told hm.

"My sister's powers are too strong," Hadie sighed. "We need another God. Where's dad?"

"Uncle Hades went to find Proteus to transfer Maleficent back into her mortal form," the girl who was with Ben and Evie said, speaking for the first time. "But I should be able to help you guys. What's the spell?"

"Yeah, not so fast. Who are you?" Uma asked, putting a hand on her hip as she raised an eyebrow.

"I'm Zelda, daughter of Zeus," she said, "and yes I'm aware that he's the one who helped erect this barrier."

It was hard to forget Mal's words when they had been accompanied by a Godly battle.

"Well Zelda, I'm sorry to know your dad's Zeus but you can't help that," Uma told her, smiling a little at the other Godling. "The spell goes like this…"

Uma told her the spell and they started to try again. Meanwhile, back on Olympus, the three Gods walked to where Poseidon said Proteus had been working for a while. His eldest son needed to remember who had saved him from certain death and needed to pay his debt back. Hades sighed as they saw the God standing a few inches from them, his back to them.

"Just stay here," Poseidon said. "I'll talk to him."

"Of course brother," Hades said with a nod before looking over at Percy. "You alright, sunspot?"

"Yeah. I never really met my brothers before. Titan died before I had the chance to meet him. Dad said his staff is still missing and he wants it back. Meanwhile Proteus never really talks to dad after the whole incident with Menelaus."

"It's fine," Hades told him as Percy paused. "I know the story behind it all. Besides it happened a long time ago, long before you were born. Why does your father want the staff back, do you know?"

"I have no idea," Percy told him before noticing his father waving his hand over to them. The two of them closed the distance between them and the other two Gods.

"Proteus, you remember your uncle?"

"Of course, how could I forget?" Proteus answered. "How can I help?"

Hades opened the box to reveal the lizard to him. "This is Maleficent. She was turned into a lizard by Mal, my daughter who I unfortunately share with her. Fairy Godmother had told Mal that the only way Maleficent could transform back into her human form would be if she learned to love. Obviously we don't exactly have a lot of time for her to do that so is there another way we could transform her back?"

"Yes and no," Proteus answered with a small sigh. "You see, for me to transform her back, she'd need to remember what she always loved before all the evil."

"How?" Hades asked, handing the box to him.

"Only she knows," his nephew stated, taking the box and holding it close to him so that Maleficent could hear his words. "Maleficent, you've always loved the Moors. The place you once called home before you were imprisoned on the Isle. You loved Aurora like she was your own. You were the one with the power to break your own curse. If you truly had any love for your own power or your daughter, turn back to your old self."

He paused. "It would be a fair assumption that if you transformed back, they would offer you freedom to go as you pleased. No one would hunt you, no one would put you back on the Isle. You could go home."

_Oh Right, she had loved Aurora._ Hades thought as he took in that bit of information. _I can't help but wonder if she ever truly loved me or if I was just someone she used for power. Well, never mind that. That's in the past._

Hades moved to the side as Proteus went on, continuing to talk to Maleficent. Something seemed to start happening as sparkles began to form around the lizard.

"Something's happening," Poseidon said.

_Oh yes, very well spotted brother,_ Hades thought but resisted the urge to roll his eyes.

"It's not enough though," Proteus sighed. "By the way, what's going on that you need Maleficent to transform now anyway?"

"She's our only answer to save Mal and prevent Zeus from killing her," Hades told him. That seemed to be the answer as a cloud of purple smoke appeared and everyone quickly covered themselves to prevent being encased in it. As it cleared, Hades bit back a groan upon seeing an angry Maleficent standing where the lizard once was.

Yes he loved his daughter. Yes that would mean working with Maleficent to save her. No that did not mean he had to be happy about that fact.

"What do you mean?" Maleficent asked, glaring at Hades. "Why on Earth would Zeus want to kill—?"

"Oh like you ever loved our daughter," Hades scoffed, cutting off Maleficent's question to stand off against her.

"Oh I did what was best for her! Love is _nothing_."

"If that was true, you'd still be a lizard!"

"Okay, both of you need to stop. I'm not even going to _question_ why Maleficent's standing before you Hades even when I know she's supposed to be a lizard."

Hades turned to see Persephone standing in the doorway, Uma and Hadie by her side.

"Sorry dear," Hades said softly as Hadie made to run to him but Uma held him back.

"Since when are you two back together?" Maleficent scoffed, staring at Persephone.

"That is none of your concern," Persephone told her before turning back to Hades. "Sort this out. You're running out of time."

Hades looked at his watch and saw that she was right. There were only three hours left until midnight. Three hours until Zeus would kill Mal.

"Uma, where's Ben?"

"He's with Zelda and Evie in Bore—I mean Auradon," Uma told him.

"Good. Steph, just give me a few minutes with her. Alone, please," Hades asked. Everyone did as he asked, even if Persephone glared at Maleficent and Hadie shot him a small heartbroken look at not even being _greeted_.

Hades sighed and turned back to Maleficent. "Look, I know the way we left things was messy and probably the worst way I could have ended it. But please. Help us and we will return the favor. Think of this as a deal with me if that makes it any easier. You know I keep my side of my deals."

"I'm listening," Maleficent told him and unless Hades was mistaken, he could have sworn he saw some hope in her eyes. That was something he didn't remember ever seeing before all the time he had known her.

"I'm sure you've seen that Mal's powers are taking over."

"Yes, I did in fact notice that. And if she had just done what I wanted her to do, her Godly powers wouldn't be a factor right now."

"…explain," Hades said, his voice somewhat hard.

Maleficent rolled her eyes. "Yes I was trying to control her and yes, _maybe_ I wanted to take over Auradon through her but if she had taken the scepter like I wanted her to, the scepter's powers would have felt her Fae powers. Meaning she'd have less control over her Godly powers and more so on her Fae half."

"Meaning the ember wouldn't work," Hades sighed.

"Exactly," Maleficent nodded before sighing herself. "I was angry at Beast for locking us up after everything I did for Phillip's kingdom. I saved them from his mother and that was the thanks I got!"

"Hey, it's over now. Mal broke the barrier, freeing everyone…" Hades said before laughing slightly, causing Maleficent to frown.

"What's so funny?"

"She did what you asked her to do. Just…not the way you asked her to do it."

Maleficent rolled her eyes before looking at the father of her daughter. "What do I have to do?"

"Get through to Mal but this time calm her down. If we can get her to let go of the ember, we can save her before Zeus has a chance to kill her."

"Before he can do _what_?!"

"Calm down will you? I already told him that's not going to happen."

"Fine. I'll try but I can't promise anything. Mal's powers were strong enough the last time we faced off."

"Better than nothing which was what we had before we got you back to your human form."

"Then let's go," Maleficent said, turning to leave but Hades' hand on her arm stopped her.

"Promise me Maleficent. You're not going to try to take over Auradon or anywhere else and just go back to your home when all this is over?"

Maleficent paused and thought for it for a second. "No, I won't. You believed in me Hades when everyone else would have thought you insane for freeing me. I'll keep my promise but I'll need my scepter. I'm not going to use it against anyone but for this to work I'll need full use of my powers."

"Fine," Hades sighed and, with that, they went to join the rest of the group to make their way back to Auradon.


	14. Mistress of All Evil

Everyone quickly came down from Olympus and gathered at Auradon Prep. They needed to decide their next move as the purplish-blue smoke still hung in the night sky. Thankfully though nothing was burning anymore.

"Dad, I'll head back to the Isle. Hopefully I can use my powers to keep it from sinking," Hadie said. Uma stood next to her cousin and nodded.

"I'll go with you Hadie," she said, her shell necklace glowing.

"We'll be happy to help with that as well," Poseidon told his granddaughter. "You'll need all the sea powers you can get."

"After all, you're going to need all the help you can get to break that spell," Percy said, giving his niece a small smile.

Hadie couldn't help but smile a little at that. He remembered what Mal had told him just four months ago: that the Olympian Gods weren't all bad and that there was family on the other side if he ever needed help. Then there was his father. Mal had been right about giving him another chance.

 _I guess mom was just mad that he left her after I was born,_ Hadie thought.

"Thank you," Hades said as he looked at his younger brother. "He's going to need all the help he can get."

"It's my job to keep the sea at bay. Besides if we don't keep the Isle from sinking, people will die," Poseidon said.

"I'll help you guys look for Mal, along with keeping an eye on the Mistress of All Evil here," Persephone said as she gave a small glare to Maleficent.

"Will the Mistress of All Evil really be able to help Mal?" Hadie asked, whispering the question to Uma as to prevent Maleficent from hearing. The last thing he wanted to do was risk offending someone who was offering their help. Besides, if Hadie remembered his history correctly, Maleficent cursed Aurora because she didn't receive a _party_ invitation. Who knew what she'd do if she heard his question?

Uma couldn't help but give a small sigh at that. Hadie knew what Mal went through growing up with Maleficent so she could understand why the young Godling was worried about his big sister and was skeptical that Maleficent would truly be able to help.

If she was honest…so was she.

Maleficent couldn't help the soft sigh that escaped her lips. She wasn't sure if she should be happy that people still addressed her as the Mistress of All Evil or disheartened that she couldn't escape that moniker. Yes she knew it had not been that long ago that she broke from the Isle with a desire to rule Auradon and steal Fairy Godmother's wand. And yes, she had tried just that afternoon to control her own daughter.

She'd been blinded by revenge toward everyone in Auradon and anger toward Mal for turning her back on her, on evil. But after hearing what Hades had said, about Zeus wanting to _kill_ Mal…it was almost as if the blindfold had been removed and she could see clearly again.

Then there was the fact that Hades was the one to have faith in her. That she was the only one who could help. All she wanted was her wings back, her scepter that held most of her powers. She wanted to be _herself_ again, the fairy she'd been all those years ago before the barrier and before she had ever met Stefan.

"Hadie," Hades said, bending down to his son's level and looking him square in the eye, having heard his son's whispered question. "The same way I love you but don't necessarily show it, it's just like with Maleficent and Mal. Sometimes love can't be shown but it's there."

"You…you love me?" Hadie asked, his eyes dancing with joy. Before his father could respond, the young blue haired boy quickly hugged his father for the first time in years.

Hades didn't say anything, but just hugged the boy in his arms. He knew it was rough for the boys of the Isle, never being able to express emotions like love or sadness out of fear of being seen as weak. It had been one of the reasons why Hades had left Hadie's mother. His mother had been one of the sidekicks who only knew hatred.

 _Of course I love you Hadie. You and Mal are my whole world,_ he thought, hoping to convey that in the hug before they broke apart and split into the two groups. Hadie, Uma, Poseidon and Percy made their way to the Isle in hopes to find a way to stop the sinking and save everyone on the Isle. Whereas Hades, Maleficent and Persephone started walking toward the Enchanted Lake. From there they would make their way to the museum where Maleficent's scepter was kept.

Meanwhile, Doug, Dizzy and Jane had arrived on the edge of the bridge. They'd finished their search for anyone who might not have disappeared, who might have been able to help them help Mal. Unfortunately, they hadn't had any luck in that regard and therefore made their way toward the Isle.

"Look!" Dizzy exclaimed and the three of them noticed that the barrier had gone down once more. The three of them quickly made their way toward the Isle, hoping to find Uma for help in stopping Mal. As they closed the distance between themselves and the Isle, they noticed something happening over on the west side of the Isle.

"What's happening over there?" Dizzy asked, pointing to something that looked almost like an energy beam shooting at the Isle. However, upon a closer look, it didn't seem to be damaging anything.

"I say we check it out," Jane said.

"You think it's a good idea?" Doug asked as he looked over at Jane.

"Why not? Mom's started training me with my magic. If there's something I'll need to do, I'll be able to do it."

"If you say so," Doug told her as he glanced at Dizzy. "We're going to need a guide."

"You up for it?" Jane asked the younger girl.

"The Isle is my home, and frankly it's safer for me there than Auradon is at the moment," Dizzy told them as she started walking off toward the Isle. Jane and Doug looked at each other before quickly following her.

 _Ben can't find out about this. It would surely break him,_ Jane thought as they made their way into the Isle.


End file.
